


Rebuilding The Image

by Magicofisis



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Erotica, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Heterosexual Sex, The Quidditch Pitch: Erotic Couplings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-11-19
Updated: 2005-11-19
Packaged: 2018-10-27 17:46:50
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10813779
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Magicofisis/pseuds/Magicofisis
Summary: Harry Potter is sick of being known as the wizarding world’s Golden Boy. Hermione has a plan to fix it, but it will require certain sacrifices on his part. Harry/Cho





	Rebuilding The Image

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Annie, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [The Quidditch Pitch](http://fanlore.org/wiki/The_Quidditch_Pitch), which went offline in 2015 when the hosting expired, at a time I was not able to renew it. I contacted Open Doors, hoping to preserve the archive using an old backup, and began importing these works as an Open Doors-approved project in April 2017. Open Doors e-mailed all authors about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact us using the e-mail address on [The Quidditch Pitch collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/thequidditchpitch/profile).

  
Author's notes: This one has humor, some plot and lots of unconventional sex. Written as part of my Sheryl Crow series, inspired by the song “[You’re An Original](http://www.geocities.com/magicofisis/YoureAnOriginal.html).” Heartfelt thanks to Kate for the fantastic beta job.  


* * *

* * * * *

__

Caught you in a pose that everybody knows

We thought you had something special

  
~ from You’re An Original ~ Sheryl Crow/Jeff Trott

* * * * *

"When are they ever going to leave me alone?" asked Harry as he slammed down the _Daily Prophet_ in disgust. "Why do you still take this rag, Hermione?"

Hermione smiled as she looked up from her parchment. Harry had been reading the newspaper while waiting for Hermione to finish her missive so they could go out to lunch. 

"I get it because it’s the only journal that covers the Wizengamot. Why, what does it say this time?" She was trying hard not to laugh at Harry’s expense, but he’d given the same indignant tirade so many times that she could almost recite it by heart.

"Did you know that I’m planning to marry Elvira Godfrey in the fall?" Harry answered, his voice rising with irritation.

"No. I didn’t realize you two were that serious," said Hermione through pursed lips. It wouldn’t do to laugh when he was this testy.

"Yes, it’s news to me, as well. We had one date and the reporter snapped a photograph of me holding the door for her. I didn’t even kiss her goodnight. Tell me the truth, Hermione. Why won’t these reporters leave me alone? I’m old news. That ‘war hero’ thing happened three years ago. Why don’t they go pick on someone else?"

Hermione stood up from the desk and sat next to him on the sofa. "Do you really want to know the truth?" she asked. Harry nodded. "They print that stuff because you make it so damn easy for them to portray you as the wizarding world’s most eligible bachelor. My dad says there are Muggle entertainers who would kill to have the favorable publicity that you hate so much. I mean, for God’s sake, Harry, to read all the quotes they print from girls who say they’ve dated you, you sound like some kind of saint!" 

Hermione quoted some of them in a singsong voice. "‘He’s always so polite.’ Or ‘I’ve never dated anyone who respected my opinions like he does.’ And I even read one that said, ‘He kissed my hand when we met for the first time.’ Come on, Harry, nobody does that anymore."

"They don’t?"

"Dear God, you don’t mean to say it’s all true...." Hermione swallowed hard, looking aghast at the very thought.

"Er, well, most of it, yeah. But not the parts where we’re supposedly planning weddings and stuff."

"I suppose," she said slowly, "that the next thing you’re going to tell me is that you’re still a virgin."

"No!" exclaimed Harry. Then more quietly, he said, "There was Eileen."

Hermione patted his arm in a comforting gesture. "Yes, Eileen. I really liked her a lot. We all thought you’d end up marrying her."

Harry stared down at his hands. "Yeah, me too."

"What ever happened between you two? You never told me."   


Not looking up, Harry said, "She, er...she decided she wasn’t bisexual after all."

Hermione gasped at this unexpected revelation. "Good God! You mean she left you for another woman?"

"Afraid so. I should have told you, but, well, that’s not the sort of information you want spread around in the _Daily Prophet_."

Patting his arm again, Hermione said, "No, of course not. I won’t breathe a word to anyone, I promise." She paused for a moment. "But you see the problem, don’t you, Harry?"

"Not really."

"The interesting stuff that has happened to you, plus the wonderful qualities you have that make people admire you – it’s perfect fodder for tabloid readers who are always looking for a Golden Boy."

Harry stood up to face her. "Well, I’m tired of being their Golden Boy. I accept that I’m always going to be well known – I sealed that fate when I defeated Voldemort – but you’d think they could write something different about me for a change." He held out his hand to pull Hermione to her feet. "Come on; let’s go get a bite to eat."

They were halfway through lunch at a quiet café in Diagon Alley, when Hermione got that "I-have-the-perfect-idea" expression on her face that always worried Harry. She clapped her hands gleefully and said, "I’ve just figured out what you should do, Harry."

"What I should do...about what?" he replied nervously.

She shot him an exasperated expression as if she couldn’t believe he was so slow to catch on. "You wanted to get the reporters to leave you alone, didn’t you?"

"Yeah! Of course I do."

"The trick is to ruin the perfect little image they have of you and prove that you’re not a suitable candidate for Golden Boy any longer. You’re going to have to get some bad publicity." She glanced at him eagerly, as if this was an obvious course of action.

"What do you mean by ‘bad publicity’? Not anything illegal, I hope."

Hermione couldn’t believe how thick he was being. She decided not to mince words. "I mean, you’re going to have to be an obnoxious jerk. Just – I don’t know – just act like Draco Malfoy for a little while."

Harry frowned. He’d always sort of prided himself on being a nice person: someone who treated others the way he wanted to be treated and all that. He didn’t even think he _could_ act like Malfoy. Well, okay, maybe he could if he were angry enough...

"All right," he said finally. "Suppose I decided to try this plan of yours. How, exactly, did you think it would work?"

"Well, you know the Ministry Ball is coming up next week. I think you should show up without a date and then make a move on someone – best if it’s someone else’s date – and make a scene with her and leave together. There will be loads of reporters there. Just make sure you’re obnoxious and pompous and, well, just act like Malfoy." Hermione had a glint in her eye, as if she could almost see how perfectly this was going to work out.

"But Hermione," Harry whined, "I could never do that. It would be so mean to lead a girl on just for the sake of publicity, especially if I had no intention of ever having a real relationship with her. Besides, I haven’t been invited."

Harry shrugged as Hermione rolled her eyes at him. Did she really think this would be a good idea? But still, he’d love to get those reporters off his back.

"Harry," said Hermione firmly, "you’re Harry Potter. If you want to go to the Ministry Ball, I have no doubt they’ll add you to the guest list. You are the wizarding world’s most eligible bachelor, after all. And as for being mean, just make sure the girl you choose is someone who would use you without batting an eye. I can come up with a very long list."

"You’ll come with me, then?" Harry asked anxiously.

Hermione shook her head. "No, I’d just be a distraction and the reporters would try to put a love-triangle spin to the story. No, you have to go with someone who is entertaining and who likes these types of events. Someone who won’t mind you ditching him and won’t need you to be his constant companion."

At the same time, they grinned at each other and said, "Fred."

* * * * *

Harry had to admit that he looked damn good as he checked himself out in the hall mirror. Hermione had convinced him to buy the trendy waistcoat-style black dress robes with dark green piping. Now that his dorky round glasses were long gone, the green trim really brought out the color of his eyes. His trousers were an expensive wool blend that hugged his arse and flared in all the right places. His hair was, well, his hair, but the disheveled look was kind of sexy in a way. He checked out his smile, with a small dimple showing on one cheek. Eat your heart out, Gilderoy Lockhart.

The doorbell rang and Fred Weasley arrived also looking quite handsome in navy blue.

"Here," said Fred, holding out a piece of parchment to Harry. "Hermione stopped by the shop this afternoon and asked me to give this to you. She said to tell you that she had to spend forty-five excruciating minutes with Lavender Brown to find out which single girls were planning to attend the Ball who weren’t already in serious relationships."

Harry scanned the list. There were about ten names on it, six of which had stars beside them. Harry surmised the stars meant that these were the girls who would use him without a second thought, and reading some of the names, he had to agree. Mandy Brocklehurst – bitch. Cassandra Blakely – ice princess. Cho Chang... Cho Chang? Really? That might be interesting. Harry had had a huge crush on her as a fifth-year at Hogwarts, and their only date had ended on a very bad note that he still didn’t understand to this day.

Harry noticed Fred reading over his shoulder and asked, "So what do you think – do you know any of these girls well enough to say whether I could pull this off?"

Fred smiled. "I know a few of them. Cassandra Blakely will likely freeze your bits off, and Edwina Thompson dated Percy a few times – she was just as pompous as he is. And… Cho Chang? I don’t know if I’d go near her, Harry. She’s a man-eater."

"What do you mean?" asked Harry with interest.

"I mean, there’s a pile of wizards with their backs torn to shreds because she’s used them to climb her way to the top of the social scene. Lee Jordan works with one of her old flames and, man, does he ever have some interesting stories." 

Fred perused the rest of the list, but he didn’t know any of the other ladies marked with stars. When he tried to hand the list back, Harry said, "No, Fred, you’d better keep it. If I’m able to get one of these girls to leave the Ball with me, I don’t want them to find it." Fred agreed, and they Apparated to the Ball.

* * * * *

After about thirty minutes of small talk and mingling, Harry realized that this task was going to be a piece of cake. Women were falling all over themselves to talk to him, and he was treating them all with disdain as he did his finest Draco Malfoy impression. In fact, it seemed like the more obnoxious he was, the more the ladies seemed to flock to him. 

The most attentive of these admirers was none other than Cho Chang, who kept coming up with excuses to walk past him and flirted shamelessly every time she did. Well, he couldn’t really blame her, in a way, as her date was the most stodgy, uptight and unattractive man he’d ever met. Fred mentioned that her date was also probably one of the wealthiest wizards he’d ever met.

"I’d hate to get on his bad side by stealing his date," said Harry. "What if he sends a hit wizard after me or something?"

Fred guffawed in his infectious laugh. "As if old Sterling would be able to find a hit wizard willing to take you on, oh Mr. Savior of the Wizarding World!"

"Well, I suppose it’s good to have a reputation sometimes..." Harry said with a smirk. "So, Fred, do you know him well enough to see how upset he’ll be if I steal his date?"

Fred nodded. "I’ll do better than that – I’ll convince him it’s a good idea. That is... are you positive you want to get mixed up with her, mate?"

Harry raised an eyebrow and nodded as he glanced over at Cho, who had thrown her head back in laughter at someone’s joke. She was very beautiful, with her shiny black hair flowing halfway down her back and ample cleavage peeking out of her revealing crimson gown. Yes, she would do nicely. Now his challenge would be to avoid becoming her next victim. What was it Hermione had told him to do? Oh yeah. WWMD. He was supposed to ask himself, ‘What would Malfoy do?’ Well, he’d be a smarmy git and interrupt her conversation with some overused pick-up line. But Harry would do it with style.

He walked over to where she was chatting with three other women, all of them several years older than Cho. He slipped his arm around her waist and said with a gross affectation, "Just when I was worried there wouldn’t be anyone worth meeting at this tiresome event, I looked over and saw the enchanting Cho Chang conversing with three other gorgeous ladies whom I have yet to meet." He introduced himself, which was completely unnecessary, of course, and silently thumbing his nose at Hermione, he kissed their hands.

Mindful of staying in his Malfoy persona, Harry made charming conversation with the four women for several minutes, taking the opportunity to leer at Cho whenever he thought she might be watching, and making sure that all of his direct comments to her were heavily laden with sexual innuendo. When he determined that he’d peaked her interest enough, Harry excused himself and quickly found Neville Longbottom who was chatting with Terry Boot and Michael Corner. 

He’d never been pretentious in his whole life, but this was the new Harry – the one who was going to get him out of the public eye, if possible. He quickly commandeered their conversation and steered it over to find out what kind of a reputation Cho’d had in Ravenclaw. This sparked rude comments almost immediately, and Harry found himself inundated with stories about how she’d slept with anyone who she thought could help her get ahead. He carefully masked his surprise – how had he not known any of this when he was still at Hogwarts?

Harry said, with a sinister growl, "I’m going to get what’s rightfully mine tonight." The other three stared at him, obviously confused. "What are you all staring at? I took her to Hogsmeade once and she never put out for me – she still owes me!" Three sets of eyebrows shot up, but Harry laughed. "You just watch the master."

* * * * *

"Well, do you think your chum Sterling is going to give Cho up without a fight?" asked Harry as he slid up behind Fred.

Fred grinned. "He’s not even sure why he asked her here in the first place, but after talking to me for a few minutes, he’s convinced that she bewitched him with a charm somehow. Seemed quite relieved when I offered your services to escort her home."

Harry nervously fingered the clasp on his robes. "Crap. Fred, what if I can’t pull this off? I’ll be in the _Daily Prophet_ all right – as the Biggest Idiot Who Lived."

Fred grabbed his arm and escorted him towards the Ministry of Magic Department Head’s table. "I’ve been watching your prey, and she can’t keep her eyes off you. Whatever you said to her before must have caught her fancy. Here, come and greet my parents before we get you drunk enough to start dancing."

"Dammit, Fred, I forgot. I can’t do this in front of your parents! I’ll never be able to explain it to them…." Harry felt his stomach drop from shame. The Weasleys were like parents to him, and he didn’t want to disappoint them.

"Good thing Hermione thinks of everything," whispered Fred. Harry turned and caught a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Just a morsel from one of our Skiving Snackboxes should have Mum on her way home just as the fun begins. And I’m sure Dad will go with her – he hates these events."

Harry smiled with relief. "You’re a good friend, you know. Thanks."

"That’s what big brothers are for, mate," replied Fred as they approached the area where Molly and Arthur Weasley were standing.

Harry made pleasant conversation with them for several minutes and was then led off to the bar where he proceeded to drink two glasses of Firewhiskey in rapid succession. He watched from a distance as Fred politely offered his mother a drink, knowing that in a few minutes time, Mrs. Weasley would need to be escorted home. Harry’s eyes scanned the guests and landed on Cho, who was indeed staring at him. He nodded to her slightly and raised his glass in a silent toast. 

After tossing back the contents of his glass, Harry rushed off to the loo in an attempt to calm the churning in his stomach. He quickly reviewed all the ideas he had discussed with Hermione, and focused again on his Draco Malfoy persona. He could hear the band begin to play in the ballroom. It was showtime. 

* * * * *

It was probably the only time Harry had been thankful for the dancing lessons that Hermione had coerced him into taking right after Hogwarts. He wasn’t the best dancer on the floor, but being comfortable with the steps gave him the chance to focus on exchanging snarky banter and scandalous gossip with his various partners. He said slightly naughty things at every opportunity, and noticed his dance partners whispered excitedly to their friends as they returned to them, undoubtedly sharing the information that Harry Potter was not quite as pure as they were led to believe. He was careful to dance with a fair number of ladies, pouring on the charm to those on Hermione’s list and giving them reason to hope that there was a date with him in their future.

Even while dancing with others, though, Harry made a point to seek out Cho wherever she happened to be, and more often than not, her gaze was focused on him. At last, it was time to move in for the kill. He decided to sit out for a spell, and after downing the lager that Fred handed him, he made his way to where Cho stood, several paces away from her date who was clearly ignoring her. She smiled as he approached, flipping her hair in a flirtatious manner.

"You’re looking fine out there, Harry," she said. "I hardly recognize you as the same awkward boy who danced under duress at the Yule Ball in my fifth year."

Harry slid an arm lightly around her waist, noticing goose pimples on her arms as he did so. "Well, some things improve with age. You, for example, have never looked more beautiful. I’m rather surprised you aren’t surrounded by men."

Cho seemed taken aback at this statement, as if she was also surprised there weren’t other wizards hitting on her. "Oh, well," she said, glancing vaguely at her date, "I’m here with Fillmore Sterling, you know. I suppose they might be intimidated…"

Harry stood up a little straighter. WWMD? Malfoy would want to prove that he wasn’t intimidated by some rich, old wizard. "Intimidated? By an ugly, rich, old fart? I’m sorry, Cho, but I can’t see why you’re with him. Your beauty is wasted on him." Harry cringed inside as the words came out of his mouth: his other self would never have said such a thing out loud. He wondered for a moment if she was going to protest. When it didn’t appear so, he continued, "Unless, of course, he takes care of your needs in some other ways…" Harry leered at her and was almost certain that she would have slapped him had they not been surrounded by Important People.

"Harry Potter! I’m shocked at you!" Cho said loudly, causing several people standing near them to stare. She wrestled herself out from Harry’s arm and stepped away from him, glaring ominously with her arms crossed in front of her. 

Harry was pleased. The reporters would know he’d said something shocking. It was time to drop the hook now. "Hey, now, don’t take offense," said Harry, flashing his most fetching smile. "I just wanted to make sure that you know you have other options." He licked his lips for dramatic effect.

Cho was quiet for a moment, thinking. "What exactly are you offering?" she asked finally.

"We could start with a dance, and see where it goes from there," Harry answered. "That is, if you don’t think your – ahem – ‘date’ would mind too much." Cho narrowed her eyes threateningly as she took his arm, but said nothing.

The band was playing a weird cover of the old Clash song, _London Calling_. Harry’d had just enough to drink to forget that everyone was watching him, but not so much that he was making a fool of himself. He twirled Cho around and dipped her several times, allowing his hands to brush against the bare skin revealed by the low-cut back of her dress. Cho seemed to relish the spotlight, and she wore a wide smile while gazing at Harry intently. They seemed to be oblivious to the attention they were attracting from the dancing crowd.

They stayed on the dance floor for the next song, a slow number that Harry only vaguely recognized. He pulled Cho into his arms and held her scandalously close. Harry didn’t have to think too much to get himself into the mood to seduce her: Cho was beautiful, and she seemed very interested in his advances. He slid his hand down, resting it on the curve of her arse. Again, she could have protested, but instead she responded by licking her lips. Feeling bolder, Harry stopped moving on the dance floor and pulled her even closer, pressing his sizable erection against her belly. Ignoring the fact that they were standing in the middle of a crowded dance floor, Harry launched a full-out assault on Cho’s mouth, swirling his tongue around hers, exploring every crevice.

"Let’s go find somewhere private. I want to fuck you." Even as the words came out of his mouth, Harry had to remind himself that he was pretending to be Malfoy, who had always been disgustingly presumptuous. He began to lead her off the dance floor, noticing as he did so that dozens of eyes were watching them.

Cho tried to look surprised, but her eyes were shiny with lust, and it was clear to Harry that she had every intention of going along with his plan. "You’re pretty sure of yourself, aren’t you, Harry?"

"Are you denying that you’d love nothing more than for me to pull you into an empty room, press you up against the door and shag you until you scream?" Harry sat down in an empty chair and pulled Cho onto his lap, making sure that he positioned her so she could feel his excitement.

Cho shook her head. "I’m not denying anything. It’s just that, well, look. Everyone is watching us. And isn’t that Rita Skeeter over there?" 

Cho pointed towards the bar, where Rita Skeeter was, indeed, sitting and dictating to her Quick Quotes Quill. Harry caught her eye and smiled before pulling Cho’s head towards his to search for her tonsils again.

"If they’re going to insist on watching us," Harry said, "then I suggest we do our best to entertain them. But only for a minute – I’ve got other plans for you that don’t include an audience." He rubbed his thumb over one of her nipples, while his other hand groped her arse. Harry couldn’t believe she was letting him paw her in public like this, but it certainly did confirm all the rumors he’d heard about her.

"I must say that you put on a mighty fine act for the press, Harry," Cho said as she came up for air.

"What do you mean?"

Cho replied, "Every article I’ve read about you paints you out to be a charming, gallant gentleman. They’re practically ready to canonize you."

Harry nibbled on Cho’s earlobe before answering. "You don’t actually believe all that rubbish, do you? Let’s get out of here and I’ll prove to you that I’m no gentleman."

They stood up, and Cho searched the room for Fillmore Sterling. He was chatting with several members of the Wizengamot and a few elderly witches that Harry didn’t recognize. "I suppose I should give Fillmore some kind of an excuse for leaving."

Cho waited respectfully while her date finished speaking to the others. Then she said, "I’m sorry, Fillmore, but I’m not feeling well, so Harry Potter has offered to take me home."

Harry smirked, "Yeah, don’t worry about Cho, because I’m going to make her feel much, much better." He waggled his eyebrows just to make sure there was no mistaking his intentions. 

Cho looked ready to kill Harry, but Fillmore simply patted her arm. "Yes, love, you go on home. I’m sure Mr. Potter will take good care of you."

The rest of the group cast pointed looks at each other, but Harry unashamedly held out his arm for Cho to take. As they walked away, Harry could hear them gossiping in hushed voices. He looked around and noticed one of the more obnoxious photographers from _Witch Weekly_ following them.

"Why did you have to be so crass?" Cho spat at him as soon as they were out of earshot.

Harry spun her around so that he could hold her close again. "I didn’t say anything except the truth. And I _did_ warn you that I’m no gentleman." Harry kissed her again, making sure their pose was compromising enough to make the tabloids. Once he was certain that the photographer had gotten several good shots, he drew his wand and Apparated them to his flat. 

* * * * *

Harry was hardly in the habit of pulling girls at parties and bringing them home to shag, but he supposed there had to be a first time for everything. Harry watched carefully as Cho surveyed his place. Perhaps as a result of Aunt Petunia never allowing him to leave behind a mess, Harry’s flat was very tidy, and although it was sparsely furnished, the things he owned were of good quality. There was something about the way in which she was scrutinizing his home that caused his confidence to fail, and he suddenly felt like he was fifteen again.

His alcohol buzz was wearing off, and just as Harry began to feel insecure, he heard Hermione’s voice in his head, saying, "WWMD?" Ah, yes, he was still in character – his Malfoy persona. He needed to act that way until Cho left; if the _Daily Prophet_ interviewed her, it wouldn’t do to have her say that he’d been a perfect gentleman. Besides, she seemed to respond quite nicely to his bad boy act.

Harry came up behind Cho and wrapped his arms around her as she looked at the moving photographs on his mantelpiece. His hands freely roamed across her body, and he bent down to kiss the side of her neck.

"I’ll bet you do sinful things with this luscious body of yours," Harry whispered in her ear. 

"Maybe I do," Cho purred, "if you think you’re man enough to handle me. I’ve been told I can be a little…rough."

Harry was mildly alarmed by this confession, not because he didn’t think he was capable of handling whatever Cho had to offer, but it would definitely be uncharted territory for him. Eileen had been sensual and passionate, but never rough. Still, Harry was so turned on that rough and dirty was sounding pretty good.

"Do you like it rough, then, or do you just dish it out that way?" he asked before snaking his tongue along her collarbone and ending with a bruising love bite. 

Cho wiggled her arse against Harry’s cock, so that it throbbed from the stimulation. It had been a long time since Harry’d had proper sex, and he wasn’t much interested in waiting any longer than necessary.

"Don’t hold back on my account," said Cho, smirking. "Not that I really believe Mr. Golden Boy is going to rough me up too much…"

A challenge, then, thought Harry. He vaguely recalled that Cho was very competitive, and he knew that _he_ was. Should make for an interesting evening. Harry deftly unzipped Cho’s dress and let it pool around her ankles. He wasn’t surprised that she was wearing the sexiest lingerie he had ever seen. He spun her around to face him, leering hungrily at her scantily clad breasts and the rather pointless thong she wore. Her stockings appeared to be held up by magic, sheer and black against her pale skin. 

"The problem with you Ravenclaws is that you believe everything you read in the _Daily Prophet_ ," Harry growled. "Don’t you think it’s better to do your own research?" 

He captured her lips as he fumbled with the buttons on his shirt. Meanwhile, Cho’s fingers made quick work of unfastening Harry’s trousers. Harry hastily cast them off, as well as the rest of his clothing. He was not the least bit self-conscious about his body: he worked very hard on keeping fit and was complimented frequently. 

Trying to focus on what someone with considerably more experience would do in this situation, Harry turned his attention back to Cho’s body, which was undulating quite deliciously against his cock. If she was trying to drive him wild with desire, she was succeeding. He had the idea that dirty, raunchy sex could be done several ways: in a doorway, against a wall, hands and knees on the floor, against the couch. He pulled his lips away from Cho’s and smiled wolfishly.

Harry removed her bra and knickers before turning her around and bending her over the back of his couch. Leaning over Cho, he reached around to cup a breast in each hand, sliding his tongue up her spine and craning his neck to suck on her lower lip. Then he dragged his lips and hands over her back and knelt down behind her. He spread her cheeks wide, flitting his fingertips across her clit with maddeningly quick speed. His tongue swirled over one arse cheek, and he sucked hard before biting down.

Cho let out a squeal, but by that time, Harry’s tongue had returned to the cleft of her arse. He moved so that his thumbs held open her folds, and he licked his way to her clit. She gasped as he worked a finger inside her while he continued to worry her clit with his tongue.

"God, Haaaarry," Cho moaned. 

He could hear her heavy breathing as he continued to pump inside her – two fingers now. He had to make certain that she was close, because he knew that he sure as hell wasn’t going to last long once he entered her. His hand movements were not gentle, and he was sucking, licking and biting, while digging the fingers of his other hand into her tender flesh. Each time Harry did something he thought might be painful, she did not cry out, but merely moaned louder, giving him the distinct impression that she really _did_ like it rough.

"More," Cho panted. "Fuck me hard!"

Harry didn’t need to be begged twice. He stood up, entering her quickly from behind, one hand gripping her hip tightly while reaching around to squeeze her breast with the other one. Fuck, he was so close already, but he couldn’t come yet – not before she did. He focused on pounding her harder, his balls slapping against her skin with each thrust, encouraged by her cries of "God," and "yes," and "ohhh."

His lips found the back of her neck, and he pinched her nipple between his thumb and forefinger, and then Cho was coming. As she clenched around his cock, Harry let out a cry as he spilled deep inside her. It seemed to go on forever, as shock after shock coursed through Harry’s body. It took all of his restraint to keep from collapsing on top of Cho. 

Figuring she couldn’t be all that comfortable, Harry pulled out of her and led her to the other side of the couch, where he lay back and coaxed her down on top of him. Then they kissed for a while before either one of them spoke.

"I never guessed that you’d know your way around a woman’s body quite that well," said Cho with a sigh.

"I’m full of surprises," Harry answered. "Although I have to admit that I’m not surprised that you were so eager to come home with me." He grinned at her playfully and wondered just how nasty she was going to let him be. "Your reputation precedes you."

She glared at him through narrowed eyes for a moment, but then her expression softened. "Well, Fillmore is fairly boring – he only ever wants to talk about his business – and it would have been foolish to turn down a chance to be with England’s most eligible wizard."

Harry snorted. "I highly doubt that anyone would ever think you foolish."

Cho started to sit up but Harry grabbed her around the waist. "Where are you going? Is there somewhere you need to be?"

She grinned and raised an eyebrow. "I was just going to get my wand and clean up a bit so we’re ready for another go."

With a quick wave of his hand, Harry cast a spell to clear away their sticky mess, leaving Cho staring at him wide-eyed with her mouth partly open.

"Done," said Harry quickly, mentally cringing at his blatant showing off. Though fully capable, Harry rarely did wandless magic except in the case of an emergency, which this clearly was not. "Don’t want to make you too clean, though. I like you best when you’re dirty."

"You _are_ full of surprises." Cho gazed at him seductively for a moment before capturing Harry’s lips in a deep kiss. 

Harry could feel himself relaxing – the hour was late, he was still slightly drunk and he’d just come hard. Cho’s kisses were very nice; they were lulling him to sleep. As Harry’s mind wandered, it ran smack dab into Hermione’s voice saying, "Remember, you’ve got to stay in character the whole time. Really make a lasting impression." Harry chuckled to himself – some impression he was going to make, having come after only about two minutes and then promptly falling asleep.

With much effort, Harry pulled away from Cho and untangled himself from her limbs. He stood up and held out his hand to help her up. "Let me show you around the flat, Cho. I want you to be very comfortable here."

Since Harry’s flat was small, the tour didn’t take long, and the fact that they were both naked made them somewhat distracted. Harry grabbed a bottle of wine and a couple of glasses from the kitchen before heading down the hallway to the bedroom. Cho stopped in the loo, giving Harry a minute to pour the wine and think about his next move. Things had gone well so far, and Harry had to admit that he hadn’t considered the practical aspect of Hermione’s plan – that he’d get to have spectacular, and possibly kinky, sex. 

Cho entered the bedroom looking smug and alert. Her predatory expression made Harry nervous again. He held out a glass of wine, willing his hand to be still as she took it from him, and then he took a long drink from his own glass.

"This is very good," crooned Cho. "So you’re a wine connoisseur as well?"

Harry had chosen one of his better bottles of wine for the occasion, but he didn’t need to let Cho know this. "It’s a hobby. I’m no expert, but I know what I like."

"And does that apply to other things besides wine?"

"You’ll just have to do some research to find out." Harry took another swallow of wine. God, he was making himself gag with all of this pretentious flirting bullshit. It was time to get back to the sex already. "If I’m not mistaken, an attentive host always does whatever he can to make his guests feel at home. So what’s your pleasure? More wine? A little music? Dancing?"

"None of those," replied Cho. "I’m interested in my host lying on his back on the bed so that I can prove to him that I’m no lady."

A half-smile curved across Harry’s face as he set down his wine glass and spread himself out on the bed. "By all means, prove whatever you need to prove." As he settled on the bed, he noticed Cho holding her wand a split second before she cast a spell to bind his wrists to the headboard. Instead of worrying him, Harry was amused. Escaping from this particular bondage spell was the first bit of wandless magic he’d ever learned – but she didn’t need to know that. It would be fun to see what she had in mind.

"Let’s see now," purred Cho, "we’ve done fast and dirty. How about slow and sexy?"

"Sounds perfect."

With Harry’s arms out of commission, Cho began to move her tongue freely across his chest and up to the hollow of his neck. When she kissed him, she tasted like wine and sweat, and it left him wanting more. Her fingertips massaged and tickled, tweaked his nipples and fluttered across his groin. Harry gave himself up to her attentions – she was obviously very experienced at this and it felt divine.

Harry’s eyes had rolled back into his head as he felt himself getting harder with Cho’s lips moving everywhere except for the one place he desperately wanted that mouth of hers to explore. "You’re a fucking tease, you know that, don’t you?" he panted as she dragged her tongue over his hipbone again without touching his cock.

She looked up at his face, eyes dancing mischievously. "Oh no, Harry, I would never tease. I have every intention of finishing up what I start…eventually. I can either rush through this and make it good, or I can take my time and make you come so hard you’ll still remember it next year. Your choice."

"The second one, naturally. Now who’s sounding pretty sure of herself?" Harry smirked.

"I could give you testimonials, but it would sort of interrupt the mood. You’ll just have to trust me." 

And with that, she crawled to the space between Harry’s legs and pushed them wide apart. Cho’s hands spread him even more, and he felt her tongue and lips kissing and licking the sensitive area under his balls and around his hole. Dear God, she was good at this. It wasn’t long before Harry was nearly incoherent with pleasure and ready to come at any second.

"Cho…can’t hold back," he panted.

She seemed to be prepared for Harry’s declaration, because instantly, her wand was in her hand and she cast a charm that felt like a vise grip around his cock. What the fuck was _this_ spell?

"What did you just do?" whimpered Harry. 

"It’s a simple enough _Delayed Gratification_ charm. Don’t worry – it doesn’t cause any damage."

Delayed gratification? But that sounded like he wasn’t going to be able to come. Holy hell, she was going to kill him!

Cho must have seen the panic on his face, because she began to laugh. "No one I’ve done this to has died yet, so you don’t have to worry. I thought you said you could take whatever I dished out."

Breathing heavily, Harry answered, "Well, I didn’t know you’d be messing with my bits."

"I think you’ll be very satisfied with the results." 

With that, Cho proceeded to crouch down and take Harry’s entire length into her mouth. He’d heard about girls who could deep throat, but he’d never known anyone who’d had it done to them. It was absolutely amazing how she could swallow him whole and still be able to lick his balls – he never would have thought that was possible. Every nerve in his cock was on fire, but he couldn’t come despite the unbearable pressure in his groin. 

After several minutes of exquisite torture, Cho moved back between Harry’s legs. She spread them apart again and began to lick his hole. Opening him as well as she could with her fingers, she vigorously worked her tongue inside of him.

Harry moaned so loud, he thought the neighbors might hear it, but he couldn’t bring himself to care as she continued rimming him. God, he’d never even considered the possibility that licking there could feel so good, and the only thing keeping him from coming right now was the damn spell. On the other hand, he didn’t want her to stop. In fact, he wished there was a way to get her tongue farther inside of him.

Almost as if reading his mind, Cho replaced her tongue with two fingers that probed inside Harry’s arse over and over again, looking for a particular spot. The intrusion was uncomfortable, but in his current state, it barely registered. When Cho’s fingers brushed up against his prostate, she curled them, and Harry’s moan was almost a shout. He was seeing stars in his peripheral vision. He’d _never_ experienced anything like that.

Cho continued to work Harry’s arse until he was nothing but a writhing bundle of nerve endings. He’d long ago lost the ability to speak, but when she finally straddled his hips and lowered herself onto his cock, Harry called out her name and broke out of his magical bindings. With a hand on each of her hips, he lifted her up and thrust his hips upwards as she impaled herself on him.

"Yes!" she cried, frantically riding Harry. "Harder – as hard and fast as you can."

Hard and fast it was going to be then, thought Harry as he rolled them so that Cho was on her back with her legs high in the air. He’d get better leverage from this position, and even though he knew he wouldn’t be able to come until she ended the charm, Harry was determined to give Cho everything she asked for and more. He felt her razor-sharp nails scratching down his back as he pounded into her, yet nothing else mattered, because until she came, he wouldn’t be able to come either. 

After what seemed like an eternity, Cho came with a shout, her entire body seeming to convulse with her orgasm. Harry continued to kiss her, moving slowly as her muscles contracted around him. He thought about trying to end the spell she’d put on his cock using wandless magic, but he’d screwed up enough spells to be wary of using wandless magic anywhere near his privates.

Desperate now for release, but not wanting to do anything to upset the one who had the power to make it happen, Harry shifted his hips slightly to remind Cho that he was still achingly hard. As Harry looked at her face, it was obvious that she was very aware of this fact.

Cho’s voice was deep and rough when at last she spoke. "Do you like head, Harry, or would you rather fuck me some more?"

"Head, oh God, yes," Harry moaned. He knew that he’d come in a few seconds either way, but God, he loved the feel of her warm, wet mouth around him.

Cho ended the spell and barely got her lips around his prick before Harry was bucking his hips and moaning wildly. The pressure in his groin was unbelievable, and his cock was on fire again. As advertised, he came so hard that he saw stars again, and he was sure he’d remember it for the rest of his life. Then he passed out.

When Harry came to, Cho was staring at him with cat-like eyes. He didn’t know what to make of her. All he knew was that he’d never thought it was possible for someone to explode with pleasure the way he just had. Harry’s arms felt like lead, but he managed to move a hand over to cover hers.

"Sorry," Harry said hoarsely. "I’ve never done that before. That was just…wow!"

Cho smirked, "I warned you that I play rough."

Harry scooted next to Cho on the bed so that he could kiss her. She seemed to settle in next to him like a cat. "You have an extraordinary talent for that. Would you like another testimonial?"

Cho laughed, but said nothing. She seemed quiet and edgy. Her eyes were open, and her eyes darted around the room.

"What’s the matter?" Harry asked.

"Hmm? Oh nothing’s wrong. I’m just trying to work up the energy to go home."

Without pausing to think, Harry replied, "Go home? Now? You don’t have to leave." Then he thought about it; he’d never had casual sex before – he supposed that people who weren’t in a relationship did that all the time: had sex and left right away. He didn’t want to make it sound like there was anything more going on, so he started thinking fast.

"I mean, we still have a few surprises left to discover. But I need to sleep before I can go again. So stay if you want to."

"All right. If you’re sure it’s okay." 

Harry kissed her and said, "I’m sure." With a wave of his hand, he used his last bit of magical energy to clean them up before he drifted into a peaceful sleep. 

* * * * *

The light tapping sound on the window would have been indiscernible to anyone who hadn’t lived a fair number of years with somebody trying to kill them, but Harry awoke to the noise immediately. He slipped out of bed and opened the window for Hedwig, who bore in her beak a copy of the _Daily Prophet_. He rummaged for an owl treat and pulled on his dressing gown, sparing a glance for Cho, who was sprawled out over most of the bed, still fast asleep. Beautiful, but deadly, he knew. No matter how great the sex, you had to be wary of a witch who would cast a spell on your most personal bits without so much as a warning.

He padded out of the room, stopping briefly in the loo to relieve himself and take a hangover potion, and continued to the living room. He picked up his clothes and Cho’s dress before settling into the large chair with the newspaper.

Harry didn’t normally take the _Prophet_ , so he figured it was Hermione’s. Sure enough, scrawled at the top in her handwriting were the words "Page Four" and a smiley face. He quickly turned to page four and laughed when he saw it. Under the headline "When Good Wizards Go Bad," were several pictures of Harry dancing with various women. The picture of him and Cho showed his hand on her arse and his mouth moving towards hers. The captions beneath the pictures spoke about Harry’s apparent decision to "play the field." He skimmed the article quickly. 

__

"Harry Potter, who defeated the evil wizard Voldemort and has been linked romantically to a number of beautiful witches, appears to have changed his mind about settling down for now. His gentle disposition and attentive manner seem to have given way to a wilder side – one that shows no propensity to settle down with just one witch. Potter, age 21, was the life of the party at last night’s Ministry of Magic Gala Ball. Flitting from one dance partner to the next, he was showing particular interest in a former Hogwarts flame, Cho Chang, a London socialite. Although Miss Chang, 22, was the date of a prominent businessman, she and Potter were seen leaving the Ball together well before midnight. Neither could be found for comment before press time."  
  


Not like they even tried, thought Harry. Still, it was exactly the sort of press he’d been hoping to get: it made it clear that he was not out searching for a wife.

Harry reached an arm behind him to scratch his back and noticed a sharp pain when he touched his skin. He went back into the bathroom and lowered his dressing gown so that he could look into the mirror to see what was wrong with his back. There were six bright red scratch marks that had cut clear through the skin. He suddenly remembered that he’d gotten them when he was, um, rather exuberantly shagging Cho. Harry grinned. It had been worth it.

He peeked into the bedroom and saw that Cho was still asleep. Harry realized that he had no idea what the proper etiquette was for a one-night-stand with a morning-after shag. Should he make breakfast first or just nudge her awake so that they could get on with it and he could send her home? He now had a pretty good idea of why you wouldn’t want someone to stay over after a casual shag – it was damned awkward the next morning.

Deciding he was hungry and needed some food if he expected to have enough stamina to go another round with Cho, Harry fried up some bacon and eggs, and boiled some water for tea. He served up a couple of plates and levitated a breakfast tray into his bedroom. Cho was still lounging in bed, but her eyes were open.

"You made us breakfast?" Cho said, sitting up and pulling the sheet modestly over her breasts. "I’m impressed – the slayer of Dark Lords can also cook. This is really sweet of you."

Sweet? Harry wasn’t trying to be sweet. He was hungry and thought Cho might be hungry too. God, he hoped she wasn’t thinking there was more going on here than sex. Let’s see – WWMD? Well, for one thing, he wouldn’t have invited the witch to stay overnight in his bed – but it was a little late for that. He probably wouldn’t have made breakfast either. No, Malfoy would have gone straight to the sex and then fabricated an excuse as to why she had to leave, or else he’d just throw her out. Harry wasn’t heartless enough to be able to do that, though.

Harry plowed through his breakfast, hoping Cho would take the hint and eat quickly. She didn’t seem inclined to speed up at all, and he began to get impatient. An idea struck him – maybe he should start without her.

He removed his dressing gown and dove headfirst under the covers. Sliding a hand down her outstretched leg until he reached her ankle, he slowly kissed his way down to her toes. Eileen had had a bit of a toe fetish, and Harry had become pretty good at indulging it. He wondered if Cho would get off on a toe-job. At least it might surprise her, which would definitely be a plus.

He was sucking on her third toe when he heard her muffled cry of, "Ohhh, Haaarrrry!" Interpreting this as a moan of approval, he snaked one hand up the inside of her thigh and ran his fingers through her folds until he found her clit. His half-interested erection perked right up when he discovered that she was already soaking wet. Harry continued to finger Cho until he finished the other foot and emerged from under the covers.

Cho was propped up on the pillows, her head thrown back and her chest heaving. Oh yes, it appeared she liked this attention quite a lot. When Harry’s head appeared, a smile crossed her face.

"I’m not bothering you, am I?" he asked, knowing full well that he was doing anything but. "I don’t want to interrupt your first cup of tea."

"Christ, Harry, you just started and I’m already about to come. Where’d you learn to do that toe thing?"

"How long until you believe me when I say I’m full of surprises?" Harry replied with a wink. 

He bent down to kiss his way to Cho’s breasts, which he lavished with attention. He was careful to avoid the small bruises that he’d left behind from his rough treatment of them the night before, but she didn’t seem sore. Wrapping his lips over his teeth, he bit down on her nipple hard. She arched into him and pulled his head closer, so he did it again.

"Oh, that’s so good," she moaned.

Harry let his teeth scrape against her skin, amazed and completely turned on by the fact that she wanted him to practically abuse her. He could bite, pull, and squeeze anywhere he wanted, as hard as he wanted to, and it only made her more aroused. Harry was also very aroused, but not so much that his brain was completely addled by lust. He felt that he had time to explore Cho’s body the way he really couldn’t last night when he’d been so frenzied.

It was over an hour before Harry’s climax was ripped from his body. Cho had come three times, and Harry had done to her practically every erotic thing he could think of. They snuggled together in the bed, feeling boneless and sated, and promptly fell asleep.

* * * * *

He was stretched out in a meadow, a warm breeze blowing over his skin, naked and warm in the sunshine. There was a girl with him. She was touching him just the way he liked, her long blonde hair falling carelessly from her shoulders. Eileen – so gorgeous and sweet. His breath hitched as her tongue licked a path to his cock, and when she guided the head into her mouth and sucked, his eyes flew open. Eileen never did that.

Now fully awake, Harry looked down to see Cho’s lovely dark hair cascading over his belly as her sinful mouth enveloped his cock. She might not be Eileen, but this was definitely a damn good way to wake up. She wasn’t deep throating this time, but instead, she was lightly running her fingernails over his sac, pressing and rubbing in just the right spots with the perfect amount of pressure. 

Harry had a passing thought that he needed to watch out for Cho, because she had him by the balls, and he understood at once exactly how she’d worked her way into the popular wizarding social scene. Then she rubbed on his perineum and he forgot to care.

He tangled one hand in her hair to let her know that he was awake and thoroughly enjoying himself. Cho licked her way up his torso, stopped to give him a love bite on his neck, and then kissed him greedily on the lips.

"I need a shower before I go," she said. "Care to join me?"

"God, yes." Harry didn’t know if he could keep it up for another go, but from the lustful look in Cho’s eyes, she was damn sure going to make him try.

The shower felt nice on Harry’s sore muscles, and Cho’s hand felt nice on his cock. He lathered her skin with the shower gel that Eileen had left behind months ago, and the memories brought back by the scent erased any doubts he had about his ability to perform.

Cho had something completely different in mind, though. She pressed her silky skin against Harry’s as they stood under the shower mist and whispered in his ear, "I want you to take me up the arse, Harry. Will you?"

His cock twitched even before the rational part of his brain processed her question. Fuck, yes, he wanted to. But he’d never done it before, and to be honest, he was a little bit apprehensive of hurting her. But then he remembered that she _liked_ that. "Okay," he answered, trying to sound calmer than he felt, "but you’ll have to tell me what to do. I haven’t done it before."

Following Cho’s direction, Harry conjured some lubricant and slicked up his fingers. It was a little weird stretching her hole, but the sounds escaping her mouth left him with no doubt that she was enjoying what he was doing. There was a hiss of pain each time he added a finger, but after a moment, she’d call out some form of encouragement and beg him to move his fingers.

Harry was as hard as granite by the time he ever so slowly worked his cock inside of her. Cho was bent over, hands resting on the side of the tub, and the only reason Harry was staying upright and not passing out from her tight, hot heat was because he was holding on to her hips for support. He was only too ready to move when she asked him to, and she came almost immediately. As she clenched around him, Harry almost dissolved from the sheer pleasure of the sensation. Fuck, this was just as good as he thought it would be. Cho moved his hand between her legs as he continued to fuck her, and he pinched and pressed on her clit. She came again with a shout, and Harry did too.

He eased out of her and pulled her into his arms. They swayed under the spray of the shower, hardly able to stand from their exertion. Worried that he might pass out again, Harry turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. He handed Cho a towel, and offered a hand for balance as she stepped out as well.

They went back into the bedroom and Cho summoned her clothing from the night before while Harry rummaged through his drawer for clean boxers and jeans.

After a few more kisses and a promise to owl, Harry watched as Cho Disapparated. It had taken all of his willpower to refrain from asking her to stay longer, but he knew now that the reason she’d left behind so many victims was because they’d been unable to resist the lure of incredible sex. Still, he wasn’t quite willing to burn the bridge, so he left the timing of his promise to see her again purposely vague.

Harry saw a flutter out of the corner of his eye and noticed Hedwig perched outside with a roll of parchment attached to her leg. He rushed over to let her in and retrieve the letter. As expected, was from Hermione. There were only a few words on it: "Well, I’m waiting by the floo."

Harry glanced at the clock on the wall – it was nearly half past four. He supposed he’d best contact Hermione and get it over with. Then he’d have some dinner and an early bedtime – he was completely knackered.

* * * * *

Hermione convinced him to meet her for curry, so he put on a decent shirt and made a half-hearted attempt at combing his hair before Apparating to their favorite spot in Diagon Alley. He gave Hermione a peck on the cheek and sat across from her, noticing her gleeful grin. He smiled too.

"So it must have gone well if she’s only just left," said Hermione, not bothering with small talk before diving in to what she really wanted to discuss.

"Yes, it did. We got on fine."

As he expected, Hermione’s expression was one of shock and indignation and no-way-do-you-get-to-keep-this-from-me.

"You got on fine? Come on, Harry. For all the work I put into this project, the least you can do is share a few details."

Harry smirked, trying to decide how much information he ought to share. While he normally would have told Ron everything, he usually kept details about his sex life from Hermione, but she wasn’t going to make it very easy. "Okay. I flirted with a few girls at the Ball – well, you read that in the _Prophet_ – and I brought Cho home to my flat and, you know, we had sex and stuff."

Hermione giggled. "I figured that. She gave you quite the love bite there on the side of your neck."

Harry covered the spot with his hand. He hadn’t seen that one in the mirror. "It wasn’t there when I cleared up the others this morning. I must have got it this afternoon."

Hermione’s eyebrow rose up almost to her hairline, and she cleared her throat. "Really? There was more than the one?"

All right, she was asking for it now – he was going to wind her up a bit. "Yeah, a few. But it’s really the scratches on my back that are killing me. I can’t quite reach them well enough to heal them."

Hermione blushed. "Scratches from when you and she were—"

"Yes," interrupted Harry. "Like a damn cat, she was. I mean, it’s not like I could go any faster."

Turning even redder, Hermione giggled again. "Sounds a bit keen."

"Turns out she’s just as competitive as I am, and I suppose neither of us wanted to be the first to admit we were knackered."

This was definitely too much information for Hermione, because she quickly shifted the conversation. "But you spent the day with her; you must have gotten to know her pretty well."

"No, not really. I know what she likes in bed, though. And, well, not necessarily in bed." Harry didn’t want to let Hermione off the hook too easily, since she was the one who’d brought up the subject in the first place.

She tried again to steer away from the subject of Harry’s sex life. "So you read the article in the _Daily Prophet_ – I thought it was excellent. And when I spoke with Fred earlier today, he said that you were a perfectly ghastly spectacle on the dance floor making out with Cho right in front of everyone. It sounds as if you might have succeeded in shaking that Golden Boy image."

Harry smiled at this, even though he’d been too drunk to recall making out with Cho on the dance floor. But he did remember having his picture taken several times. "The git from _Witch Weekly_ who always follows me around probably got some fairly risqué shots of Cho and me together. I tried to pose as best as I could without her getting suspicious."

Shifting anxiously in her seat, Hermione leaned closer to him. "I’m glad you brought up _Witch Weekly_ , Harry. I hope you won’t be angry, but I took the liberty of inviting a reporter to meet us here."

"What – tonight?" Harry groaned. So much for a quick dinner and early bedtime.

"Sorry, Harry. I didn’t think you’d be so, um, worn out. But it will be really good to have them get a quote directly from you. You know they’re going to do a story on you, so you might as well cooperate. Just one more stint at being obnoxious like Malfoy, and then maybe it will be your last one for a while."

They’d just finished their dinner when the reporter from _Witch Weekly_ showed up. Harry irritably answered her questions, having to repeat several times that "No, Ms. Granger and I are not, nor have we ever been, romantically involved", "Yes, Ms. Chang is a lovely person and a beautiful witch, but we are not dating" and "No, I have no plans to marry anyone until I’m well into my thirties."

When the reporter left their table, Harry huffed and said, "Damn nosy reporter – I should have told her that Cho was the best lay I ever had. That’s what Malfoy would have said."

"I think you did fine, Harry. Don’t worry; this will be just what you need to make everyone forget about you. Now you can go back to being your usual pleasant self."

"I don’t know; being a Good Wizard Gone Bad definitely has some advantages." 

Harry winked at his friend, and after bidding her goodbye, he Apparated home. He was asleep within five minutes.

* * * * *

The headline on the cover of _Witch Weekly_ was exactly what Harry had been hoping for:

  
**Euan Abercrombie – The New Golden Boy!  
**

Harry knew Euan was a fellow Gryffindor and excellent Quidditch player from a wealthy wizarding family. He’d seemed like a nice enough chap the few times Harry had spoken to him in school. The poor bloke probably had no idea that his life was about to change drastically.

Scanning the table of contents, he finally found the article about himself on page sixteen.

  
**Did Fame Ruin Harry Potter?  
**

Ruin? That seemed a bit harsh. Cho certainly hadn’t thought he was ruined. Harry flipped to page sixteen and scanned the pictures. They made his intentions towards Cho fairly clear. He desperately hoped Mrs. Weasley would miss this issue. Satisfied that the photos would have the desired effect, Harry read the article:

  
_"The first time this reporter met Harry Potter, he’d just defeated the wizard who would not be named in an extraordinary battle of Good vs. Evil. Though not yet eighteen, Potter was charming and polite, respectful to others and humble, despite his many accomplishments. The Harry Potter I spoke to earlier this week was obnoxious and rude. Though his staggering good looks are undeniable, his winning personality has gone the way of his childhood, leaving behind a bitter young man with a caustic wit and little respect for authority, for the media or for women._

_"Others who spoke to Potter at the recent Ministry of Magic Gala Ball described him as crude and vulgar. His fame, fortune and good looks may have gotten him plenty of attention, but they’ve also gone to his head. Many witnessed his heavy drinking and wild dancing, and few missed his open display of affection towards another wizard’s date in the midst of the crowded dance floor. The two left together shortly thereafter._ __

"Witch Weekly _caught up with Miss Cho Chang, the witch who was the recipient of Potter’s attention, earlier this week to ask about their relationship. ‘Well, he’s Harry Potter, arguably one of the most powerful wizards in history,’ said Chang. ‘If he wants something, it doesn’t seem very wise to refuse him.’ When asked if she’d be seeing Potter again, Chang responded, ‘I’ve seen quite a bit of Harry Potter, and yes, I’d like to see him again. He’s full of surprises.’"_

__Witch Weekly

  


Harry laughed out loud at Cho’s quote – she’d seen a lot of him indeed. He wasn’t sure that he liked her insinuation that he’d somehow coerced her to leave with him, but he supposed that anyone who knew her would know the truth. He kept reading.

__

"However, when told of Mr. Potter’s repeated assertion that nothing was going on between the two of them and of his adamant decision to delay marriage for the next decade, Miss Chang was decidedly cooler in her opinion of him. ‘You’ve got to wonder who he’ll ever convince to marry him,’ Chang said. ‘He flaunts his magical power everywhere, and to be quite candid, he’s interested in some very questionable practices.’ She refused to elaborate on those practices, but warned those looking at Potter as a glorified war hero that he’s no different – and certainly no better – than anyone else."  
  


Harry set down the magazine and slumped back into his chair. He may have wanted to lose his Golden Boy status, but this article was a crushing blow to his reputation. And while Cho’s words reflected the same idea he’d been trying to get across for years – that he was no different than anyone else – it still hurt to see them in print and attributed to someone with whom he’d had the best sex in his whole life. Maybe she hadn’t really said that – he knew better than anyone how often misquotes were printed.

He jotted a quick note inviting Cho to dinner over the weekend and sent it off with Hedwig.

Harry puttered around the flat, tidying up and trying not to be bothered about the _Witch Weekly_ article. When Hedwig returned, he scared her when he tried to rip the note from her leg before it was fully untied.

Harry~

Thank you so much for the dinner invitation. I’m afraid I have to decline, though. I might be available sometime in the year 2010. Look me up when it gets closer and I’ll let you know.

Cho

P.S. That reporter from _Witch Weekly_ heard you tell Granger that I was the best lay you ever had. Thanks for the compliment. Wish I could say the same.

Harry unbuttoned his shirt as he walked to the bathroom. When he got there, he took it off and craned his neck to look at his back in the mirror. The scratches were still there. Like so many others before him, his back had been torn to shreds, too.

  
  
_finis_   



End file.
